The price of a billable hour has risen by more than 10 percent in four years, as large corporate law firms focused on their most expensive work and saved clients’ money elsewhere.
“The question is: Is anybody paying that?” says Maurice Watson, chairman at Husch Blackwell, looking back at hourly rates charged last year for lawyers. Husch’s average rate for partners is about $449 per hour, the firm told our sibling publication The National Law Journal in response to its 2014 billing survey. But $407 is closer to what the firm actually collects for its work. The former number represents the “rack rate,” Watson says, while the lower price factors in discounts and alternative billing arrangements.
